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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mate — a friend
  5. hand — help
  6. object — a thing
  7. stock — shares
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. mate — a partner
  12. march — music
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. wound — an injury
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. object — an aim
  19. mate — to breed
  20. hand — in cards
  21. stock — goods
  22. object — to protest
  23. march — the month
  24. pitcher — a jug

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com